Slayer In the City
by JodithGrace
Summary: Sequel to A little Distance B/S adventures in the Big Apple
1. Chapter 1

Slayer in the City

Chapter 1

"So, then this big ugly demon jumped out from behind the bushes! He was green and had this gross gooey stuff all over him!"

"And you saw him? Ewwww!"

"He was really creepy. Anyway, my mommy jumped right on him and then William grabbed him from the back. They stabbed him with these big knives, and he fell dead into a pile of green slime."

"You didn't really see it!"

"I did too...I was right in the car. My mommy and William were taking me to the movies, and we saw this demon, so they had to go kill it. It's their job!"

"You made the whole thing up!"

"I did not! "

"Did too, did too. Emily Giles is a big fat liar!" 

Aubrey Cole looked up from where she was helping Michael cut photos from a magazine. She sighed. Emily was at it again. She got up and went over to the altercation. In her most patient voice she asked, "Do I hear outdoor voices?"

"Miss Cole…Jeffy called me a liar!"

"Emily's making up monster stories again!"

"Emily, we have talked about this. These stories are scaring the other children. It's very nice to make up stories, but we don't want to scare people, do we?"

"I wasn't making it up. It really happened." 

"She said her mom killed a big ugly green demon. Right in front of her! And she says that her mom's boyfriend is a vampire!"

"Emily, please come over to the time-out corner, I want to talk to you. Jeff, please go over and color with Letetia, she's all alone over there."

Over in the corner, Aubrey looked down at the small miscreant. Golden blonde hair, a winning smile...the child looked like an Angel. Unfortunately, what came out of her mouth was far from angelic. Several children had complained of nightmares after one of Emily's stories. Creativity was all well and good, but this strange morbid fascination with evil creatures wasn't healthy. Aubrey knew poor Emily's history. Her father had died when she was three, and her mother had moved them from California here to New York a year ago. Now her mother was apparently dating some creepy lowlife; why else would Emily refer to him as a vampire? Poor child, no wonder she was traumatized. Nevertheless, this situation had to be dealt with, before she received complaints from any more parents. 

"Emily, do you remember that you promised not to tell any more of your scary stories?"

"But, I _saw_ it this time! I _had _to tell Jeff, because he never believes me."

"But, Emily, vampires and demons only live in the world of make believe. They aren't real." She knelt down and faced Emily at eye level, "You know if there is something really scary happening to you, you can tell _me_. That's why I'm here. Like if someone is touching you, or hurting you in some way. You don't have to be afraid. I'll protect you."

"My mommy and William protect me. Nobody hurts me."

"William. Is that your mother's friend? Do you like him?"

"William is funny. He sent me frogs when I was in Sunnydale, and he fights with my mother and he sleeps all day and we have to be quiet."

"Does he live in your house?" This was worse than she thought. The man was obviously a drunk or a drug addict.

"Sometimes, when he and my mommy have been out late, fighting. It's okay. I don't mind being quiet."

Such a shame. A lovely woman like Buffy Giles. 

"Does he have a job?"

"He and my mommy work together. They have an office. There's a real skull on his desk!"

"Miss Cole…Michael's eating paste again!" The cry interrupted Aubrey's reaction to that tidbit. She stood up, realizing that she was neglecting the rest of her kindergarten class. Fortunately, Natalie, her assistant was on the job. Still, the best solution would be a conference with Emily's mother. "Emily, I want you to remain here in time out for 5 minutes and think about what I told you about scaring your classmates."

Emily's face dissolved into tears. "I-I didn't m-mean to s-scare anybody."

Aubrey sighed. "I know, sweetheart, but you sit there anyway. Snack time will be in five minutes and you can join us then."

Resigned to her punishment, Emily sat down on the chair in the corner, and wondered again why nobody ever believed her.

"And then Miss Cole made me sit in time-out for five minutes!" 

Emily was eating an after school snack of peanut butter crackers. Her mother listened to Emily's tale with sorrow and frustration. Ever since the Hellmouth had opened in New York City more than a year ago, the sightings of vampires and demons had become almost nightly occurrences, yet nobody believed in them! It was a most peculiar phenomenon that Buffy had first observed in Sunnydale. Vampires and demons existed outside the scope of human reality, so people simply ignored them, until of course, it was too late, and they were dinner. Buffy had made sure that Emily was protected. She wore a cross on a chain around her neck, and she knew enough not to open the door for strangers or to invite anybody into the house, no matter how innocent they looked. 

Buffy and William did everything they could to keep Emily out of the way of their slaying. The incident the other night had been unfortunate. They had been on a simple family outing to see the latest Disney movie, _109 Dalmatians_, when a demon had leapt out of the bushes at a little old lady walking a poodle. It had snatched the poodle, apparently as an appetizer, before moving on the old lady herself. William had pulled over, and he and Buffy had jumped out of the car, leaving Emily safely locked inside. Of course, she had received a ringside view.

Buffy suspected that another parent teacher conference was in the offing. For the first time, Buffy began to understand what _her_ mother had gone through when Buffy had become the Slayer. All those conferences, and lectures and suspensions...not to mention Buffy's expulsion from High School. Twice! And Emily was still only in kindergarten! William thought that Emily should just tell her classmates that her mother was a nurse, and William was a cop and they both worked the night shift, but Buffy didn't want Emily to lie. She also didn't want her to tell her classmates about the Slaying, especially since it was causing bad reactions among the children. But how do you keep a chatty, outgoing 5-year-old quiet about certain topics without making her afraid to open her mouth at all? It had been hard enough for Buffy to keep her slaying a secret during her high school years! Poor Emily. 

Buffy went into her bedroom, where William was asleep. It had taken a while for Buffy to get used to seeing him sleep, since vampires tend to look dead, when they are dead to the world. She still felt a tiny frisson of fear whenever she saw him like that, so still and cold and unbreathing. Much like her mother and husband Giles had looked, except that, thank goodness, William's eyes were closed. His face in repose was so beautiful, like a Greek statue. She leaned down and kissed his cold lips. Like Leora in the fairy tale, William came instantly to life, and was the vibrant man that she loved. She whispered in his ear, "Emily is home. She had a bad day."

William stretched and yawned; though the yawn was merely an old human habit, and had no physiological basis. He got up, and went into the kitchen. Emily jumped up when she saw him and ran to give him a big hug. He picked her up and swung her around. They had a special bond, her lover and her child and Buffy loved to watch it. "How's my tadpole today?" William asked Emily as he placed her back down in her chair.

Emily pouted as she told him her sorry tale once again. It had grown slightly in the retelling, Buffy noticed, since Miss Cole was now sounding a lot meaner, and the timeout had stretched to ten minutes. Emily _was _very imaginative and creative, and living in the midst of a real life horror story as she did, just gave her imagination more to feed on. Had it been a terrible mistake, moving here and remaining in the slaying business? Was she doing Emily irreparable harm, dating a vampire and killing demons for a living? But, dammit…she had never been happier.

She was no longer _The _Slayer. _The_ Slayer was a 15 year old girl named Tina, who so far was holding her own, with the help of a prune faced watcher named Priscilla Scott. Buffy was finally free of the Council of Watchers and free to go her own way. She had joined Big Bad Investigations with William, and the two of them had a great time making The Big Apple a safer place to live. Of course, they couldn't do anything about the human muggers and thieves, but ironically enough those bottom feeders were often the prey of vampires, so the human crime rate in NY had actually gone down, while the mysterious and unexplained death rate had gone up.

William still maintained his funky office on Broome Street in Greenwich Village, but he and Buffy had fixed it up so that it was fit for human habitation. William had insisted on keeping the skull. He claimed that it was an old friend of his, and Buffy refused to ask him about it in fear that it would prove to be true. She only knew that it couldn't have been a vampire friend, since their skulls became dust along with the rest of their bodies at death.

They had hired a secretary of sorts. Winnie had obviously seen way too many sitcoms featuring ditzy secretaries, and was determined to live up to every possible cliché. She also fancied herself a witch, though after a few mishaps, she was forbidden to practice in the office. Buffy and William secretly referred to her as Winnie the Witless. However, Winnie, for all her faults, was all they could afford, and she did answer the phones during the day, and her cat, a balding mangy creature optimistically named Fluffy, kept away the rats and roaches. 

The telephone rang. As Buffy suspected, it was Miss Cole requesting a parent conference. Buffy scheduled it for the following afternoon. She still had no idea how she would explain Emily's preoccupation with supernatural beings, or the factual base of her story telling. And how could she possible explain William to a person whose idea of vampires probably began with Bela Legosi and ended with Willem Defoe? She couldn't even explain William to herself. He defied all the rules and everything she had ever read about vampires in the Council's archives. 

William and Emily were laughing about some silly joke that Emily had picked up at school. They were so good together, and that made no sense at all. Of course, William was useless at discipline…Buffy always had to be the heavy. He would let Emily get away with anything; eat candy for dinner, play video games or watch television all night. When she left Emily alone with him, she had to make a list of rules and insist he follow them. But he could play with Emily for hours, long after Buffy would have lost patience. In many ways he was just a big kid himself. He was also very protective of her. He would never let her do anything that would cause her any harm. So Buffy trusted him implicitly to care for Emily. 

"Dawn will actually be home for dinner tonight," Buffy announced, as she took some chicken out of the refrigerator. Dawn was now majoring in Theater Arts at NYU. She loved the City and had a lot of friends in the theater community. She supposedly lived at home with Buffy and Emily, but was seldom there, except to change clothes and do laundry. There was a boyfriend, Jason, who was attending the NYU film school, and Buffy assumed that most of her nights were spent with him, these days. Buffy just hoped that Dawn wouldn't settle down too young. She herself had married at 21, but only because the life span of a slayer was traditionally short, and she had wanted to marry and have a child. She had loved Rupert Giles, even though he had been much older than she, and she had no regrets about marrying him. As it turned out...Giles was the one with the shorter life span...he had died when Emily was three. At 27, Buffy had broken all slayer records long ago.

William sat with Emily on his lap and watched Buffy preparing dinner. At 27, she had lost her young girl prettiness, but she had gained a beauty in maturity that was even better, William thought. Of course, he was probably prejudiced because he was so in love with her. This last year had been the best of his life and his unlife put together, which was saying quite a lot. And Emily…she was an unexpected gift in his life. A little girl with no prejudices against his kind, who was the image of her mother…Emily had captured his heart the first moment he saw her little face peering at him as he slept on Buffy's sofa after Giles' funeral. 

Buffy heard the front door open. Dawn came in and tossed her backpack over an empty kitchen chair. Years of dancing lessons had made her graceful, and her long brown hair enhanced the effect. She wasn't a beautiful girl, but she had interesting looks that attracted attention, and made her more versatile as an actress. She didn't resemble Buffy at all, but this was not surprising, since Dawn had been created out of pure energy by the Monks of Dagon only 8 years ago. She had come to terms with this bizarre life history years ago, and the air of mystery that it lent her, only added to her allure. She was apparently quite a talented actress, and though this was only her first year at NYU, she had already snagged a couple of leading roles in school productions. She was in the middle of rehearsals for the part of Emily in _Our Town_. She loved the fact that her character shared a name with her favorite niece. "Hey Emily."

"Hey Dawn!"

"Hi Buffy, William. Did Jason call? I have to throw some wash in before dinner. What are you making? "

"Hi yourself. Yes, Jason called. Chicken. Rice. String beans." 

Dawn made a face. Buffy wasn't a very inspired cook. But Emily was a fussy eater and William hardly ever ate people food, and Buffy herself just didn't care all that much, so she had no reason to become a gourmet cook. And it was a free meal, so Dawn was in no position to complain. She went into her room to gather her laundry. 

They all sat down to dinner together, at the kitchen table. It was such a rare event these days to have her small family together in one place and it meant a lot to Buffy. Of course, contentment was fleeting.

"Why do I have to eat yucky string beans when William doesn't have to?" Emily whined.

"First of all, William is a grown up. When you are a grown-up, you won't have to eat string beans if you don't want to. Second of all, William would _love_ to eat string beans, but he can't because they make him sick. "

"They make me sick too." She began coughing dramatically.

"And I thought we only had one actress in the family," commented William, as he nibbled a small piece of chicken which was all he ate in front of Emily. The phone rang, its shrill tone interrupting the domestic scene. Buffy answered it, annoyed.

It was Priscilla Scott, Tina's watcher. She was as stuffy as Giles and Wesley had been when Buffy first met them, though both had loosened up in time. But now Miss Scott sounded concerned.

"Buffy…please forgive me for interrupting your dinner. But, have you by any chance seen Tina this evening?"

"Tina? No, I haven't."

"Oh dear...I was hoping that perhaps she had decided to spar with you this evening. She didn't come home form school this afternoon. "

"Did she have any extracurricular activities?" Not that _Buffy _had had any time for such activities when she had been in High School. 

"No…I require her to come home from school every afternoon. She really cannot waste time with frivolous activities. I am afraid that she appears to have gone missing."

"Well, I'm sure that there's a logical explanation." Buffy said comfortingly, "but William and I will go out and have a look right after dinner."

"William…do you really think that a vampire…" Miss Scott was too polite to finish her thought but she didn't have to.

"William knows this city much better than I do, and he can pass for a _regular_ vampire to get information, unless you want us to just stay home. " She wouldn't really do that, but "Prunella" Scott's prejudices really annoyed Buffy.

"Well, if you must bring him, I won't argue with you. "

"Does she have any friends? Maybe you could give me their names."

"She doesn't associate with those children at school. They wouldn't understand about her special circumstances. And her Slaying has to be kept a secret." 

Poor kid, Buffy thought. She didn't know Tina very well. They had begun to bond before she was called as a slayer, but afterwards, Miss Scott had deemed Buffy a bad influence. Apparently her reputation with the Council of Watchers had followed her to New York. Marrying her watcher, having best friends who helped her patrol, dating vampires…Buffy was the poster child for how NOT to be a Slayer. 

"We will do what we can, Miss Scott. We'll start at the school and work our way from there. Don't worry, we'll find her." Buffy hung up the phone, and winked at William.

'I know how you feel about Slayers, William…want to help me find one?"


	2. Chapter 2

Slayer In The City

Chapter 2

I don't own these characters…they belong to Joss Whedon and the WB. I merely toy with them for my own amusement.

Tina O'Brien sat slumped on the hard wooden bench staring off into space. She paid no attention to the people milling around her, except to be amazed that Grand Central Station was still crowded, even at this hour. She looked down at the train schedule in her hand. The problem with running away was that she knew what she was escaping, but had no idea where she was heading. She had hardly any family that she knew of. Her mother had died when Tina was 12. Her mom had loved her and they had been happy in their tiny Brooklyn apartment, although, as a single parent, she was forced to work double shifts as a waitress. When she died of breast cancer, Tina became a ward of the state. The foster family who took her in was kind but impersonal, and when the Council of Watchers sent Priscilla Scott to her when she was 13, she was happy enough to leave.

Miss Scott had let her remain in Brooklyn, in a small apartment, so that she could still attend her old school, and her life had been more or less normal, except for the Slayer training and lessons in the supernatural aspects of her calling. All that changed when Faith had been killed, and Tina had become the new Slayer. Miss Scott had moved them to Manhattan, to a much nicer apartment, and put her in private school. Tina hated it. The uniform made her look six feet tall, and skinny, and the other girls were snobs. She wasn't allowed to participate in extra curricular activities, and was not encouraged to make friends, even if she could have. Worst of all, Buffy Giles, who Tina had met for one week last year, had moved to the City, but Tina was hardly allowed to talk to her. There were so many questions that she wanted to ask Buffy, but Miss Scott was always hovering. Buffy, according to Miss Scott, had broken all the Slayer rules. She had put her friend's lives in danger by allowing them to patrol with her; she had fraternized with vampires, demons, and lesbians; and worst of all, she had seduced her Watcher, and actually married the man! 

Tina looked at the train schedule. There weren't any trains leaving until morning, even if she could decide where to go. Her Maternal grandmother lived somewhere in Florida, but had no contact with her daughter and granddaughter, and Tina had no idea how to reach her. She _could_ go to California. Buffy came from there and had said it was really nice. Tina figured that at 5'10" she could pass for 18, easily and get a job that didn't involved sticking pointy pieces of wood into the hearts of vampires. Even working at McDonald's would be a treat compared to that

"You look lost." The soft voice broke her reverie. Tina looked up. A pretty blonde girl in her early 20s or so, stood there holding a pamphlet. "I know how you feel. When I first came here, I was lost too." 

"So what? What's it to you?" she challenged the blonde. 

"Don't worry, I'm not the police or anything. We run a shelter for runaways. "She held up the brochure. Oh this was rich...this girl thought that she had run away TO New York! "I'll bet you're hungry."

Actually that was the first smart thing the girl said ...Tina _was_ hungry. She had grabbed a granola bar when she left straight from school today, but that was long gone. She had planned to buy some food at the station, but the train tickets were so expensive that she was afraid to spend money until she decided where she was going, and had paid for her ticket. 

"Why don't you come with me, and we'll get you some dinner? I think tonight is meatloaf night, but it's pretty good." The girl came closer and put out her hand to help Tina up. Their eyes met for a long moment.

"Bug off!" Tina said suddenly.

Something flashed in the girl's eyes, and she smiled. "Okay...no problem…if you change your mind…" 

Tina reached for her purse. When she looked up, the girl was gone.

The blonde walked into the main terminal where a dark haired girl waited by the main information booth. She was twirling gracefully, like a dancer, her eyes on the ceiling, lost in her own thoughts. The blonde came up to her and the brunette said, "The stars are twinkling at me. They have sung me a song."

The blonde sighed, "Dru, there _aren't_ any stars…" She looked up at the ceiling where Dru's eyes were fixed. Oh. There _were_ stars. A whole ceiling of them in constellations. Darla was so used to Dru's insanity that when she did make sense it was a bit of a shock. 

"What do they say, dear?" She asked patiently.

"That girl with her hair on fire...she is a worm in the beautiful apple." 

"The redhead? I had a feeling about her…A Slayer, huh?"

"A Slayer like the one who stole my Spike…a very naughty girl to take away my poor Spike."

"Wait! If this girl is a Slayer, Dru...that means the Buffy bitch is dead! "

Dru sighed dramatically, "No…this beautiful apple has _two_ worms. Worms that bite, like snakes."

"Shit. _Buffy_ is here too? That's just perfect. Two slayers...no waiting. Let's leave, Dru. We can get on the next train out of here."

Dru looked stricken. "Without giving Spike his birthday present? Nooo...We've come such a long way, and it's taken such a long time to get it. And it's something that he really wants. We _have _to give Spiky his present."

"Dru…we've been in this town an hour, and we've already run into the Slayer. Doesn't that tell you something? And Buffy is here too? Is she with Spike?"

"She has my Spike in prison, but I can set him free."

"I'll take that as a yes."

"I'm hungry, Darla. I haven't had my tea today. That train was too crowded; it didn't have a dining car, like the Sunnydale train did." 

"I know, Dru. I haven't eaten either. You stay here. I'll be right back." As Darla read the signs, she realized that where she had found the Slayer was actually the Departures gate. Was the slayer leaving town for some reason? Wouldn't _that_ be nice? Darla headed for the Arrivals gate, pamphlet in hand, ready to take a lost runaway out to dinner. 

Buffy and William had been looking for Tina for an hour. Nobody had seen her since school let out. Miss Scott said that when she left for school that day, she had her backpack, and was wearing her school uniform. "Did she bring any clothing to change into?" Buffy asked, talking on her cell phone, as she and William looked into every dark alley between Tina's school and apartment. 

Miss Scott's voice was very upset when she phoned Buffy back. "Apparently, she has take several changes of clothing, her toothbrush and sponge bag…even her pajamas."

Buffy thanked Miss Scott, and told her not to worry. It was evident that they were dealing with a runaway rather than foul play. She and William decided to split up. He would take the Port Authority bus station; she would take Grand Central. They had their cell phones for keeping in touch. They headed for the subway.

When Tina looked up and saw Buffy coming towards her, her eyes filled with tears. She felt totally lost and alone, and that run in with the blonde vampire hadn't helped. As soon as the pretty blonde had looked into her eyes, she had known; they both had. So now, the blonde knew that there was a slayer in town. Good…maybe she would leave and be one less vampire to deal with.

"Tina! Thank goodness. We've all been so worried about you."

"Hi Buffy. I guess I look like a total idiot, sitting her in a train station like I have someplace to go."

Buffy sat down next to the unhappy teen. "Are things really that bad?"

"I hate being a Slayer!"

"Yep. Been there done that. It's the pits isn't it?"

"It's like my whole life. I have to go to this dorky school and wear this dorky uniform and the kids all hate me because I'm 17 feet tall and have funny hair, and if they knew the _truth _about me, they would think I was crazy too!"

"Oh, Tina. I know just how you feel. When I first came to Sunnydale High School, I had been expelled from my previous school for burning down the gymnasium! I was lucky not to spend my high school years in prison! So you can imagine that I was Miss Popularity!"

"But did you have to wear a uniform?"

"No...You're right…a mere gym burning pales in comparison with having to wear a uniform."

Tina almost smiled, but caught herself in time.

"So, did something awful happen that caused you to run for the hills?" Buffy asked.

"No. Not really. It's just that all the girls have been talking all week about what they were going to do for their summer vacations. Marie is going to Tuscany. Lizzie is going sailing on her father's yacht. Blah blah blah! School is bad enough. But now summer vacation is coming up, and I just can't stand the thought of spending all summer doing nothing but slaying!"

"How about Prunella…is she kind to you?" Buffy asked.

"Prunella?" Tina giggled in spite of herself, "Oh My God. She _does_ look like a Prunella, doesn't she!" Tina sobered, "She's all right. She's just so strict, and no fun at all."

"Yeah, Watchers can be like that. It took me years to get mine tamed. But they do come around eventually. The problem is that they don't have children of their own, and apparently were never children themselves."

"Yeah...I think Miss Scott was _born_ 40 years old."

"They've also got these ideas about how slayers should be and what they should do. As you have no doubt heard, I was not very good at following the rules."

"I've heard."

"I was so dying to really talk to you that week we spent together. But 'you know who' was always breathing down our necks. I guess she was afraid I was going to tell you to disregard all the rules."

"What _were_ you going to tell me?"

"To disregard all the rules! Tina...look at me. What do you see?"

"Huh? Uh...a Slayer, I guess."

"A very, very _old_ slayer! And do you know how I got to _be_ 27 years old?" 

"How?" 

"By disregarding the rules. I had friends and a family. They kept me alive in more ways than one. They are the best things that ever happened to me. The other thing is to not be too quick to believe everything that you read."

"What do you mean?"

"Fact. All vampires and demons aren't evil. Just like all humans aren't good. It took me a long time to learn that lesson because of what I had been taught. "

"But doesn't that make it tough to kill them if there's a chance that one might be good?"

"Well, the way I've learned to deal with it is this...if it's attacking me, or somebody else...I just assume it's evil. Call me judgmental, but..."

Tina laughed. "Yeah...that makes sense."

"But if you happen to meet a vampire or a demon walking down the street minding his own business, there's probably no reason to kill him. "

"What if a vampire comes up to you in a train station and offers you a free meal?"

"Well, in that case I would remember that old saying...'there's no such thing as a free lunch.'"

"Yeah, well, I was almost hungry enough to take her up on it."

"Well, if you have your heart set on dining with a vampire, why don't I call William who is busy looking for you at Port Authority, and we'll get you some dinner?"

Tina shook her head in wonder. She had heard and read all sorts of awful things about Spike, AKA William the Bloody. And here was Buffy inviting her to dinner with him like it was no big deal. I guess this gets filed under...don't believe everything you read. 

"What about Prunella? Do you _have _to call her? "

"Well, she is very worried about you… I swear, I could hear actual concern in her voice. Besides, I want to arrange a little talk with her. See if we can't fix some of your woes. I honestly didn't realize that things were that bad for you."

"Miss Scott means well, I know she does…when I had the flu she sat up with me all night, just like my mother used to."

"Well, see, she is practically tamed already! You'll have her eating out of your hand before you know it."

"Well, I don't want to marry her!" 

At this, Buffy started to laugh and Tina joined her, and they laughed until their sides ached. They were so busy laughing that they didn't see the two pairs of eyes, watching them from behind a bank of telephones.

"Perfect. Just perfect," said Darla sarcastically, "they're friends…I was hoping that they would be at each other's throats. Would have made things just a _little_ bit easier. Two worms in one apple...once again, Dru my crazy darling, you have hit the nail right on the head." 


	3. Chapter 3

A Slayer In the city Chapter 3

Buffy looked up at the tall apartment building and hesitated. Today was awkward confrontation day; Priscilla Scott this morning, and Emily's teacher this afternoon. Diplomacy was not part of the Slayer job description, and Buffy was not looking forward to either meeting. A uniformed doorman greeted her as she walked in. A doorman! Giles hadn't been paid that much when he was _her_ watcher. And Tina went to a private school, too. Odd. She took the elevator to the fifth floor, trying to remember all of the points of her argument about why Tina should have a more normal life. 

The apartment where Tina and her Watcher lived wasn't large, only two bedrooms, but it was, to use William's word, _posh_. Miss Scott greeted Buffy effusively, apparently trying to make up for her former coldness. "Oh please do come in Mrs. Giles. Would you like some tea? "

Buffy smiled. Watchers and their tea. "Thank you. This is a beautiful apartment." How do you afford it, I wonder.

"Oh, I forgot, you've never been here, just to the old place in Brooklyn." She pronounced Brooklyn as though the word were slightly distasteful.

Miss Scott returned a few minutes later with the tray of tea things. Buffy helped her arrange them on the coffee table and the process of pouring used up a few awkward moments. Finally, Miss Scott said, "Mrs. Giles, I am so grateful to you for finding Tina last night. I was beside myself. Especially when I found out that she had run away. "

"Please, call me Buffy. I'm not the Mrs. Type." She suddenly found herself warming up to this woman. She obviously cared about her charge." I don't think she would have actually gone anywhere. I think she was just acting out her frustration.'

"Yes, I think that I may have been too restrictive with the girl. I've been doing a lot of thinking since yesterday…Buffy."

'Is there any reason why she has to be in private school? I went to public school and except for being expelled a couple of times, it was perfectly fine. The schools in this area have a good reputation. Not that I have anything against private schools" Buffy hastened to add, "My own daughter goes to one. It's just that Tina doesn't seem to like it. Though that may be just loneliness."

Miss Scott sighed. "Yes…the whole friend issue. Surely you appreciate how difficult it is to keep ones slayer calling a secret."

"Actually, it's impossible. People are going to find out. As soon as I made friends they found out right away, I didn't tell them. But they kept my secret…we became a secret society that met in the school library, with my Watcher, who was also, the school librarian, presiding. And they helped me get though it, Miss Scott, I can't tell you how much. Without their support and actual help, I never would have survived as long as I have."

"You are remarkably long lived, for a slayer."

"I've been put in a rare position, Miss Scott...one unknown in history. I have known _two other Slayers_ beside myself..._three_ counting Tina. Kendra was a perfect Slayer…textbook perfect. She had no life other than slaying. No friends, no family. And she was dead within a matter of weeks after she was called. Faith lasted longer, but most of that time was in prison, because she had no friends or family to help her stay on the right path. It seems like a contradiction, Miss Scott, but I honestly believe that a slayer can function much better if she is allowed to be an ordinary girl."

"I think I see your point, Buffy. And I will reconsider. It's just that I wanted for Tina…everything that I would have wanted for my own daughter…had she lived." Miss Scott's horse like features had softened, and Buffy could see that in her youth she might have been at least attractive.

"You had a daughter, Miss Scott?"

"Yes. She would have been Tina's age. I was married...though Scott is my maiden name. My family is quite wealthy actually." She smiled at Buffy, "you don't think I pay for this flat and Tina's school out of my Watcher's salary, do you? Anyway my husband was a bit of a cad...married me for my money, I suppose. I wasn't exactly a beauty. At any rate he left after Elizabeth died. Decided that married life was more than he had bargained for."

"What happened to…Elizabeth?" asked Buffy gently.

"Congenital heart problems…she only lived six months. I had always been interested in the supernatural. That increased after …when I was alone. My aunt was a Watcher…she got me into the Council. I went back to my maiden name. I suppose that the Council knows my history, but we have never discussed it."

"You know…my real name is Elizabeth. Buffy is a nickname I've been called since I was a child."

Miss Scott smiled. "I _thought _that Buffy was an odd name, even for an American."

Right, like Priscilla wasn't? Still Buffy had grown to like this woman. They talked for a little while longer, but then Buffy had to leave, "Uh...one more thing, Miss Scott.."

"Please call me Cilla. It's marginally better than Priss. You can imagine how popular _that_ was at school."

"Cilla...about this summer. Is there any program that you could get Tina into...a drama class, or sports, horseback riding...Just something so that she can meet other kids and have something to do that doesn't involve pointy sticks?"

"I will look into it right away…and thank you Buffy."

Well, that hadn't gone at all like she expected, Buffy thought as she left the building. I just hope that Emily's teacher is that reasonable.

Buffy let herself back into her apartment. It was just past noon. Her meeting with Miss Cole wasn't until two o'clock. Time for lunch and a little R & R. Buffy ate a sandwich and thought about last night's Tina adventure. When William arrived, they had all gone out and bought her a burger and fries. Tina was quite taken by William and grilled him like a well-done steak, asking him all sorts of questions about being a vampire. William seemed amused by her intensity and answered her quite frankly. Buffy was fascinated…most of this was stuff she didn't know. It had never occurred to her to ask Spike these questions back in Sunnydale. She had known all she needed to know about vampires...which was how to kill them. Who cared what made them tick? Buffy shook her head, amazed, as always, by her own arrogance back then.

One odd thing had happened however. All evening, Buffy had felt as though they were being watched. Tina and William felt it also, but when they looked around, they couldn't see anybody suspicious. They could feel that at least a couple of the people in the crowded restaurant were vampires, but nowadays that was hardly unusual. Nobody harassed them, or bothered them in any way, so finally they all just shrugged it off, and went back to talking. 

Buffy got up and put her plate in the dishwasher. So much for Rest, she thought, now for some Recreation. She went into the bedroom. William was there, asleep. She got undressed quietly and slipped into bed beside him. He woke up at her touch and pulled her close to him and kissed her, "Hi Love.... How did your meeting go with dragon lady?"

"Surprisingly undragonish."

"Well, that's good. She's a nice kid, that Slayer. So what's with the afternoon wake up call? No rest for the wicked?"

"I, uh.. just wanted to remind you about Emily's birthday next week."

"Got it covered, pet. I'm goin' shopping tonight, remember?"

"Oh, that's right," Buffy laughed.

"And it was somehow necessary that you deliver this reminder…naked?"

"Well, it _seemed _like a good idea at the time. But if you'd rather sleep..."

"Seems to me that sleep is a highly overrated commodity. " He pulled her over on top of him.

Ah, thought Buffy some time later, as she lay happily in William's arms… sweet William in the afternoon, and Bad Ass Spike at night…it just doesn't get any better than this!

She awoke with a start and looked at her watch...2:00! Oh My God…the meeting with Emily's teacher! She was going to be so late! She leapt up and threw on her clothing. Great, she thought, now I'm going to look like I just fell out of bed, on top of being late. She made a face at herself in the mirror, as she hastily fixed her makeup. "You ought to be ashamed of yourself!"

Somewhat disheveled and flustered, Buffy was only a half an hour late. She felt guilty as soon as she walked, well ran really, into the school building. There was something about school meetings that brought out the worst in her. Must be the memories of Principal Snyder. She could have sued him for traumatizing her for life, if he hadn't been eaten by a giant snake demon at Graduation.

"I am so sorry I'm late. I was...uh, detained...that cross-town traffic was…" Right! The school is five blocks away and you walked! "Uh…Sorry." She sat down.

"It's okay, Mrs. Giles. I was just looking through Emily's work here. But we'd better get started...the children come back from Art class in 15 minutes." 

"Sure. How has Emily been doing?"

"Emily is a very bright little girl. She is reading already at the top of her class. And her number skills are very good. You've seen the papers she brings home?"

"Oh yes...they are all over the refrigerator."

"Well, what I wanted to discuss with you is the stories she tells in class, and some of her Art work. Mrs. Kaplan, the Art teacher dropped these off." 

Buffy leafed through the paintings and drawings. Emily drew like a typical almost 6 year old. She wasn't especially talented but the drawings were decipherable at least. But it was her subject matter that was obviously the issue here. Along with the trees, flowers, and butterflies, were vampires… Spike in particular, demons, and Mommy holding a big stake, killing said demons. Lots of blood, and what was obviously green slime. Lovely. What could she say?

"Emily does have a lot of imagination, Miss Cole. But a lot of what she has drawn here is based on some hard fact. William, my, uh, business partner and I run a detective agency. Down on Broome St.." she handed Miss Cole one of their new BBI business cards. So far so good, no real lies as of yet.

"Oh...I see. Detectives, you say, How very unusual. Does that involve a lot of night work?"

"Yes, quite often. But of course we have a babysitter, or my sister, watch Emily. But anyway, that is why William often sleeps during the day. I also sleep while Emily is in school...I just don't need a lot, so I am always up when she gets home." Also, more or less true.

"Is William quite, uh, all right?" 

Well, actually he is a lot more than just all right. But you probably don't mean _that,_ you nosy bitch. She smiled, "Oh, William is great. I've known him for 10 years. He's an old family friend. He and my late husband go way back." Sorry, Giles, darling…please don't roll over in your grave.

"Oh...I thought that…"

He was some lay-about drug addicted loser that I just picked up?

"…He was someone you had just met here in New York, " she finished lamely.

"Anyway, I guess she must have overheard us talking...some of our cases are rather gruesome...though we try not to discuss them in front of her. But you know how kids are."

"Yes...they do pick up quite a lot."

"I guess that some of what she hears frightens her, and she expresses those fears in the form of vampires and demons. It's quite healthy, don't you think? Anyway, we will be more careful in the future, about letting her overhear. I'm really sorry that her stories are upsetting the other children."

"I appreciate your candor, Mrs. Giles. One last item…Emily claims to have witnessed quite a disturbing incident the other night?"

"Oh…you mean the mugger?"

"Was that what it was?"

"William and I stopped a mugger the other night, on the way to the movies with Emily. He was after a little old lady, can you believe it? Anyway...we subdued him and William phoned for the police." Are you buying this one at all? 

"You wouldn't believe the tale that Emily told about it. " Yes I would.

"Well, that's how writers are born, isn't it, Miss Cole? Taking the mundane facts and turning them into something exciting? But I will speak to her about telling her stories to the other children. In fact, now that she is learning to write, why don't you have Emily write her stories down, for your eyes only of course. It will be good practice for her and won't bother the other children."

"Uh...yes that is a very good idea. Wouldn't want to stifle creative minds, now would we?" Not to mention offend a tuition paying parent.

The bustle of returning students meant the end of Buffy's ordeal. She shook hands with Miss Cole and made her escape. She would be back in an hour to pick up Emily…but for the moment she felt like it was the last day of school for the summer, and she had just aced the SATs!


	4. Chapter 4

Slayer In The City

Chapter 4

F.A.O. Schwartz was William's favorite store. It was where he had bought most of Emily's frogs, and he often stopped by for no particular reason, just to marvel at the Magical clock that was the store's centerpiece. Tonight, however, he was a vampire on a mission. Emily's Birthday was next week, and he wanted to buy her something special. He had already picked out a frog for her collection. The first time William had seen Emily's room, he had been shocked...it did look as though a plague of frogs had descended! William had a tendency to go a little overboard, and he realized that he had sent her over 20 frogs in one year. So, he decided to buy them only for special occasions, and her Birthday was certainly a special occasion. This particular frog was made of a kind of soft slimy rubber that made it feel just like a real frog…it was kind of creepy and William loved it. 

He wandered through the different departments. No guns or weapons, Buffy had made that quite clear. William kind of liked the model cars, but Emily wasn't interested in that kind of thing…no trucks or…how about a model railroad? William loved the railroad display with its little houses and trees and tiny people. But where would they put such a thing? The little brownstone that Buffy rented was short on space for a model railroad, especially the one that William envisioned, which would have required about an acre.

Dolls were an obvious choice for a little girl, but dolls reminded William too much of Drusilla. He had trouble even looking at them…especially the Victorian ones, with their quaint lacy dresses and vacant eyes. He passed by the doll section without even looking in, so he didn't see the Victorian dolls arranged so stiffly on their shelves. He didn't see that some of them had been blindfolded.

Now doll _houses_…. that was more like it. William loved anything in miniature, and the dollhouses here were beautifully done. He chose one that would be appropriate for a six-year-old girl...no point in getting her something that was too elaborate to play with. He paid cash for it and arranged to have it delivered to Buffy's address.

He ordered a couple of rooms of furniture to start with and chose a miniature family. There was a blonde mother and a dark haired father…no, that _other_ father, the one with lighter hair. And a blonde little girl. There were little brother or sister figures too, but William knew that was never to be. Oh, there was a dark haired girl...the Aunt. Now the little family was complete. He had them wrapped and decided to bring them home with him. As he walked out of the store into the night, he was whistling.

William had left the store close to closing time, and as it was a beautiful spring night, he decided to walk for a bit before hitting the subway. As he walked down Fifth Avenue he thought about the little family figures that he had bought for Emily. They reminded him of the cheesy Bride and Groom figures Buffy had bought years ago when they had been briefly engaged, thanks to one of Willow's spells. Buffy had planned to paint blood around the groom's lips so that it would look more like him. He wondered if Buffy would marry him for real, if he asked her. So engrossed was he in these thoughts that he walked right into the back of a woman who had stopped right in front of him. She turned around. He opened his mouth to apologize when he saw to his horror, that the woman was Darla. He froze. Darla was not someone he wanted to see again in this millenium. They had never been close, even in the old days. She was Angelus' sire and had been Angelus' woman. She had loved Angelus as much as she had been capable of loving anyone other than herself. She and Angelus had been perfectly matched, in that regard. This situation had changed. He had heard something of her history from Dru, but that had been 7 years ago, and he had no idea what she had been up to since then, and had no desire to know. But here she was. What had been a lovely Spring evening had grown cold.

"Well, well," William sneered, "Look who's back from the dead…more or less."

"Spike." She gestured towards his bag, "have you reverted to childhood again? I heard that you had become a tame puppy, but now an infant?"

He ignored the barb…he didn't even want to _think_ about Emily in this situation. "You're lookin' well, Darla. The last time I saw you, you were dust in the wind. Amazin' what modern science can do...or was that ancient witchcraft?"

"A little of both, I imagine. I wasn't there for most of it."

"Well, they did a bang up job. Listen, Darla, it's been a pleasure. Sorry I can't hang about, and chat you up, but I've got a rather important…" His words were cut off as a searing pain tore through his skull, worse than any chip headache he had ever endured. He saw Darla aiming a small device at his head, then he saw no more.

The small F.A.O. Schwartz shopping bag lay forgotten on the sidewalk. Trodden underfoot and kicked by the careless crowds, the wrapping paper shredded and the little family was torn asunder; the parents, aunt, little girl and one fat frog were scattered and broken under the full May moon. 


	5. Chapter 5

Slayer In The City

I don't own these characters…they belong to Joss Whedon and the WB. I merely toy with them for my own amusement

Chapter 5

Buffy was washing her hair. It was so nice and peaceful, now that Emily was finally in bed. It was amazing that a human six-year-old could have more energy than her Slayer mother, but Buffy was exhausted…just from answering the constant questions. Buffy was feeling a little guilty after her less than honest conference with Emily's teacher. She knew that she really had to do something about the William questions. It was only natural that Emily was curious, but Buffy didn't really have any good answers for her. Why does William sleep here all the time? Why can't William walk me to school in the morning? Why doesn't William eat dinner with us? Are you and William going to get married? And Buffy's personal favorite, What's a vampire? Buffy wrapped her hair in a towel and sat down with a cup of tea. It was a difficult situation. She had fallen in love with William, and given up her life with her home and friends in Sunnydale and come 3,000 miles to be with him. Had it been horribly selfish of her to bring Emily into this lifestyle? William clearly doted on Emily and she adored him, BUT...she had never seen him in vamp face. She had never seen him drinking blood. She had no concept of the Spike that Buffy had known in Sunnydale.

In a way their entire futures depended on a tiny plastic chip. Not that William was still looking to have the thing removed…but what if it failed? What if it reached its shelf life one night while he was alone with Emily? Buffy shuddered. Why was she thinking like this? It wasn't like her to borrow trouble. The chip had worked for 9 years; there was no reason the think it wouldn't continue to work. But there was so much they didn't know. What Buffy wouldn't give to have a nice long Q & A with Dr. Maggie Walsh…at gunpoint, if necessary. But Maggie was long dead, a victim of her own Science project. Buffy got up and started to comb out her hair. Now she was having what she used to call a major wiggins.

On impulse, Buffy picked up the phone. It was probably dinnertime in Sunnydale, but willow wouldn't mind. The phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Will, it's me."

"Buffy! How are you? How's Emily? "

"Oh we're fine. How is Esme?" Willow and Tara had adopted a little Guatemalan girl about 6 months ago.

"Oh Buffy, she is just wonderful. Tara is giving her dinner right now. She says hi, by the way. Did you get the latest photos we E-mailed you? "

"Yes, they are wonderful! She is growing by leaps and bounds...I hardly recognize her from that skinny little thing you brought home."

"I know…it's a miracle, isn't it? I can't believe that Spike was able to help us get her. We are so grateful. Uh...how is he doing, any way...uh...you two, I mean?"

"So far, so good. He's out shopping for Emily's Birthday present."

"Oh! Ours is in the mail! Emily should get it in time for the big day!"

"So what did you get her…Wicca Barbie?"

"Ha Ha...no we got her vampire Ken! He's cute with his little black leather duster and big boots."

"You know...I think Mattel is missing out on a major marketing concept here!"

"Actually we got her the cutest dress. And a purse and some dress up jewelry. Isn't it fun buying for little girls? Don't tell Xander, but buying for Alex isn't nearly as much fun."

"I know...I look at the boy's toys and think…huh?"

"Me too. Listen, was there something special you wanted Buffy? We were just going to go take Esme

out for a walk. You wouldn't believe it here, now Buffy…you can actually go out for a walk in the evening."

"No…I just felt like hearing your voice, Willow. I really miss you guys. When are you going to come visit?"

"Soon, Buffy…maybe we'll come out this summer, okay? If we can swing the air fare; we're travelling for three these days."

"Great, maybe Xander and Anya can come too…when is Anya due, any way?"

"Not 'till October. She should be able to come."

"Great. I'll e-mail you guys and we can make plans. Bye Will. Love to Tara and give Esme a kiss for me."

Buffy hung up. She felt marginally better, but not much. Why was she feeling so edgy? She looked at the clock. 9:30. Good the stores were closing, and William should be back soon. She sat down to watch a movie on TV. William still kept all of his state of the art entertainment equipment back at his place. There was really no room for it here in Buffy's tiny living room. But Buffy's television was adequate for her needs. The movie, some teen romance flick from the 90s wasn't all that fascinating, and Buffy soon dozed off. She awoke to the sound of guns and bombs and flying body parts...her gentle love story had become _Saving Private Ryan!_ She looked at her watch. 11:30pm. And still no William. That was odd. He did still have his own place where he slept occasionally, and he was certainly entitled to go out for a drink or whatever. But the fact remained that since Buffy had moved to New York, William had been devoted to her, and didn't seem to have any interest in staying out at night by himself. It was as though he had been craving a family all his unlife, and now was reveling in it. And he had been so excited about Emily's present...surely he would have come home with it by now. Buffy was feeling more and more uneasy by the minute. She phoned his apartment and got the answering machine. She left a brief message to call her if he came in. She couldn't go out. Emily was asleep. No point in calling Dawn at Jason's place…why get her worried? She tried to sit down and relax but her slayer senses were setting off bells and whistles in her brain. Something was wrong, and she felt totally helpless. 

Buffy sat back down in front of the TV, with some hot chocolate. She did eventually fall into a fitful sleep, but her dreams were tortured images of dolls and frogs, and Spike murdering a small blonde girl. She sat up in a cold sweat, and immediately ran in to check on Emily. She was tossing and turning in her sleep. Buffy smoothed her rumpled covers, and kissed her forehead. Emily quieted down and seemed to relax. But Buffy couldn't. She was sure by now that something had happed to William.

Somehow, no matter how horrible the night, morning eventually comes. When the sun rose, Buffy was still up staring at the Home-shopping network. This was the point, in Sunnydale, when she would have summoned the Scooby Gang. But they were 3,000 miles away, and had other things on their minds these days, like babies. But there were the makings of a mini-gang right here. She phoned Dawn at Jason's summoning her home, and called Tina. It was Saturday, so school wouldn't be a problem. She phoned the BBI Office and left a message for Winnie to phone as soon as she arrived. No point wasting a trip to William's apartment. Winnie could tell her if he was there or not.

Hunting for vampires in the daylight, Buffy reflected, was like hunting bears in the winter. They were hibernating, but if you found their nest, they were pretty easy to dispatch. Though why was she thinking of William in terms of prey? This was William, her boyfriend, and he was in trouble. Right?

Tina arrived first. She was excited that Buffy had called her, and ready for an adventure. 

"What's up. Buffy?" she was lugging a big bag of weapons.

"William is missing."

"What? What do you mean missing?"

"He didn't come home...uh back here last night and he was supposed to."

"So? He's a vampire, right? Isn't that what they do? Wander around all night?"

Buffy sighed. "Look, Tina. You've met William. You know that he's different."

"Well, sure, Buffy. He looks like a human, and talks like a human. And he seems to really like you, and all, but basically, he's a vampire. Sooner or later he's going to revert back to his vampires ways. It's silly to think about him like he was human."

What 15-year-old says 'revert?' Buffy wondered. Obviously she was quoting Priscilla Scott. Buffy really didn't have time for this debate. "Look, Tina. As soon as Dawn gets here, I am going to look for William, some clues, anything. If you don't want to help me, then go home and drink tea with Prunella and gossip about me some more. I can do this alone, okay?"

"No...I want to come. Can I? Please? " Tina asked sheepishly. Playing detective sounded like fun.

By the time, Dawn finally arrived, Buffy was frantic to leave. Dawn had Jason in tow...they seemed to be joined at the hip these days. "Dawn, I'm really sorry to ask at the last minute like this, but could you take Emily for the day? William is missing, and I'm afraid that something has happened to him." Thank goodness Dawn understood about William. 

"Well, Jason and I have this big paper due for film class. On Quentin Tarantino! Our professor seems to think he's a genius, even though he never did anything worthwhile after _Pulp Fiction_. Anyway, we can work on it here. I'll watch Emily; don't worry, Buffy." 

"Thanks honey. There's all kinds of food in the fridge. I've got the cell phone." Buffy and Tina left.

F.A.O Schwartz was just opening as Buffy and Tina arrived. "What makes you think he came here last night?" Tina asked.

"He was shopping for a birthday present for Emily, and he loves this place."

"Well, it is a pretty cool store," Tina remarked as she contemplating the idea of a vampire shopping for birthday presents. At a toy store no less. 

Buffy asked around, but none of the clerks were the same ones who had been on last night. She asked to see the Store Manager. He came out, a fussy little man. Buffy looked at his name badge. Milton Pankhew. "Mr. Pankhew. Hi. My name is Buffy...Atherton. My...husband came in last night to buy a present for our daughter." She laughed. "You know men! I'm sure he bought her something totally inappropriate. I was wondering if you could check last night's sales for me and tell me what he bought?"

"Why don't you ask him yourself, Mrs. Atherton? " Oh. Good question.

"Uh…I _did_! And he refused to tell me!" She leaned into Mr. Pankhew. "Listen, Mr. Pankhew. Last year he bought her a _pony_! And we live in an _apartment! _ Mr. Pankhew, it broke her little heart when we couldn't keep it! I don't want the same thing to happen this year. I just want to head him off at the pass." She gave him her best pathetic Buffy look.

"Well, here at F.A. O. Schwartz, we pride ourselves on not letting such things happen. We council our...more impetuous fathers about appropriate gifts. You wouldn't believe some of the ideas they come up with. One time, we had a divorced father who wanted to buy his son a Mercedes.."

"Mr. Pankhew…I'm so sorry but I have a very important…luncheon to attend this afternoon…with the mayor."

"Oh, of course, Mrs. Atherton, I'll get those records right away." He bustled off.

"Very nice," Tina whispered

While waiting for Mr. Pankhew to return, Buffy and Tina looked around the store. Buffy tried to guess what William might have bought. As she passed the doll section, She noticed one of the clerks doing something to the Victorian dolls. Curious, she stopped. "What are you doing? She inquired.

"It's the strangest thing. I tell you people are weird. Somebody came in here, last night I guess, and put blindfolds on a whole bunch of these dolls. A couple of them are missing, too. Shoplifting, we're used to, but that blindfold thing is just...weird."

Buffy looked at the blindfolded Victorian doll and got a sudden shiver of apprehension. There was only one person Buffy knew who had a strange fascination with dolls like these. If person was the right word. Buffy grabbed Tina, and ran back to the manager's office. "What is it, Buffy?"

"Drusilla's been here."

"Drusilla? Where do I know that name from?"

"I can't explain now. Here's Mr. Pankhew."

Mr. Pankhew came out and asked them some questions to try to narrow down he time when William might have made his purchase. Buffy told him that William had left home at 7:30 PM so it would have been within the last 2 hours of the shopping day. Eventually Mr. Pankhew found a cash sale of a dollhouse to be delivered to an Emily Giles. "That's it! Uh...Emily still has my ex-husband's last name. Thank you so much. Let's go, " she said to Tina. 

"Don't you want to see which dollhouse he picked out?"

"Oh. No need...He has perfect taste. Thank you so much, Mr. Pankhew."

They left the store. "So now we know he _was_ here at 9:15 PM. What's so funny, Tina?"

"I'm sorry it's just, thank you, Mr. Pankhew. It's funny, that's all."

Buffy wasn't amused. "Have you read anything about Drusilla? She is Spike's ex-girlfriend. If she was here, he is in trouble."

"You mean Drusilla the vampire? The crazy one?"

Standing outside the store, Buffy told Tina a little bit about the Spike/Drusilla story, including an edited version of their last run in. "He let her go and I haven't seen her since. But she is very dangerous. I don't know how…vulnerable William would be to her these days. "

"So, what do we do next, Buffy? How do we find out where William went after he left the store? Would he have taken a cab? Or the subway?"

"If he took the subway or walked, we're dead. But if he took a cab, we might be able to call the cab companies and find out where they dropped him."

"But don't you have to be the Police to get that kind of information?"

"Oh. I don't know. Probably. Let's walk toward the subway stop. Keep your eyes open for anything that might be a clue."

As they walked down Fifth Avenue, Buffy was trying to imagine why William and Drusilla would have been together in the toy store. None of the possible answers were comforting. How long had she been in town? Had William been meeting her secretly? The thought of William and Drusilla together again made Buffy sick to her stomach. Tina had stopped short and was bending over something in the gutter. 

Tina laughed. "I thought this was a real frog…sitting right here on Fifth Avenue! But it's just a toy. Ewww...it even feels real." She picked the frog up by one leg. Buffy looked at it, and her heart skipped a beat. 

"William has been here. He dropped this, I know it."

"This frog? How can you tell? Are you getting some sort of mystic vibrations from it?"

Buffy sighed, "No. William buys these for Emily. It's a family joke. Keep looking around."

This time it was Buffy who found pay dirt. Near the doorway to Banana Republic, she found a tiny blonde plastic doll. The kind that fits in a dollhouse. An Emily doll.

"He would never have just dropped these things. He must have fought somebody here. " 

For the next hour they scoured the area, looking for clues. In that time they found an empty pack of cigarettes, not the brand that William used to smoke, some crushed soda cans, a half sandwich that looked somewhat worse for wear, several bits of pink wrapping paper and ribbon, and a small, torn F.A.O. Schwartz shopping bag. If there had been other dolls they must have been picked up by passing children. No blood, thank God, and no sign of a struggle, though what would have shown up from a fight on a sidewalk? They threw the trash in the nearest can, and brought the doll and the frog back to Buffy's house. A call from Winnie confirmed that William was not in his apartment, and there were no messages from him, nor had he picked up his messages from the office phone. A cold dread had settled in Buffy's stomach. In spite of all their great detective work, they still had no idea what had happened to him. Buffy sat down at the kitchen table. Emily came running in, and climbed into her lap. Buffy held her daughter close but for once, even Emily brought her no comfort. 


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Bloody hell! Where was Giles with his mug of blood? He was bloody starving! William opened his eyes. He was tied up in a chair, but he wasn't in Giles' house, like in his dreams. It was too dark to make out details of the room he was in, but he could smell rotting wood and more than a hint of fish.. Hey...I could use some bloody light here! William's head was throbbing and he was hungry. How long had he been here? How the hell had he come to this place? He couldn't remember much...just bumping into Darla on Fifth Avenue. Darla! Had she done this to him? Why? She didn't particularly like him, but she had no reason to tie him up in a chair, did she? Bloody hell! Was this some sort of plot to get him out of the way so she could attack Buffy? William struggled against the ropes but they were tied very tightly and efficiently. Where the hell was his captor? Had she left him here to starve to death? 

William heard noises in the darkness, a muffled grunting, His vampire eyes had adjusted to the dark, and he could see a person, a girl, bound and gagged on the floor in a far corner. She was evidently alive by her noise and struggles. Knowing Darla as he did, William didn't imagine that she would be alive for long. William could make out forms leaning against the walls of this small square room where he was imprisoned. From the smell of rotting wood and ancient fish, William surmised that they were old mouldering rowboats. He suddenly knew where he was. Central Park. near the lake in that old deserted boathouse he had passed a hundred times. In fact, he and Buffy had cleaned out a nest of vampires from this very place a few months ago. It was night…but which night? Was it still Friday or had time passed...eons in this place? He heard a door creak open and a lantern almost blinded him with its brightness. As his eyes struggled to make out the person holding the lantern, he heard a familiar voice; its cockney accent forever imprinted on his brain. "Spike?" She pronounced it 'Spoik' 

"Drusilla?" Had he really awoken in this place with Drusilla or was this still a nightmare? "Is that you, Dru?"

Darla and Dru together. This was very, very bad, William knew. He had heard about their partnership from Angel. The gruesome twosome, Cordy called them. At least it explained Darla's interest in him. He thought desperately about his options. With Dru, in her insanity, it was always better to play along. 

"My Spike. We've come to rescue you. Like a kitty up in a tree."

"Rescue me? Oh, that's lovely, pet. Untie me then."

"Oh no, Spike. I can't do that. Darla would be ever so cross. And you are our kitty. The kitty thought he was a bird, didn't he, and he tried to live up there in the trees with the other birds. But he was a cat, after all, and the other cats had to rescue him, don't you see? Miaow." Dru stroked his face as she spoke.

"Sure, Pet." The worst of it was...he did see. He had always been able to translate Dru's madness into a kind of sense.

"I couldn't help you, my Spike. You were too full of the Slayer and your science…. I couldn't fight them both. But I wanted to help you, my poor baby. So I went out and got you something to make it all go away."

"You make it sound like you stepped out to get a pack of fags, Dru…It's been _7 years_, love."

"She got distracted, " Another voice, this time Darla's, "You know Dru." He could see her now. She took the lantern from Dru and placed it on the floor. 

"Unfair, Darla. It took ages and ages to find those soldier boys. They moved around so...like fireflies at night. So hard to catch." She mimed catching fireflies in her fists. 

"And then when you did catch them, you turned one to play with. " She turned back to William, "That kept her occupied for years."

"Well, I had to, didn't I? How else could I find out what I wanted to know? The fireflies were buzzing so around my head. I had to catch one in my hand and put him in a jar so that he could light my way."

Soldier boys! What the hell were they trying to tell him? Was this about his chip? He suddenly recalled the small device that Darla had aimed at his head.

"Listen Dru, my head hurts, I am bloody uncomfortable, and I could use a cigarette! Couldn't you tell me this lovely story someplace else? This place stinks like fish." 

Darla spoke "I would have booked us a suite at the Waldorf Astoria, But we were a little low on funds. Plus we have to keep a low profile. The Slayer has seen me."

"Buffy?"

"No...the new one. I don't think she knew who I was, just that I was a vampire. But she is friends with the Buffy bitch now, so I don't want to take any chances. Personally, I wanted to leave town but Dru had her heart set on this little rescue mission. As far as I'm concerned you can stay here and _be _Buffy's pet vampire. What do I care?" she shook her head and said, almost to herself, " I've already tried my hand at rescue. It's not worth it."

"Yeah...with Angel. I heard all about that. Poor Darla. I mean, you shag the guy's brains out, really give it your all, and you still can't make him happy enough to break the curse. How embarrassin' for you. A big blow to the profession, too, I must say."

"Shut up Spike." Darla had produced the small device again. "I was glad to see that you actually regained consciousness...I was afraid that I might have turned the dial up too high. Of course, I don't know if this could actually kill you, but you might wish it could."

"What is that bloody thing?"

Dru piped up, "Why that's your Birthday present Spike. We've had a terrible time finding you. Your crypt in Sunnydale was all empty. I was afraid we'd missed your special day."

"My birthday? I don't even remember when it bloody _is_, Dru."

"Then we are just in time. I got you something special, Spike. "

"I'd enjoy it much better if you would untie me, love."

"No. I'm so afraid you might not want our present, Spike. I don't want you to run away before you try it out."

"Well Dru, I guess that all depends on what it is."

"The firefly told me all about your chip, Spike. I had him in a jar and he buzzed and buzzed. He showed me all the secret places where they keep the machines. It was awful, Spike. I don't like machines...they are so cold and full of wires and sparks."

"That's why she needed _me._ Machines are just peachy with me."

"All right, ladies. You've obviously gone to a lot of trouble to lay on this lovely surprise party. As the guest of honor, I'm delighted, but I don't think I want to play any more. Let me go and I won't tell the Slayers where you are. You can get out of town, and we'll all forget this ever happened."

"Right." Darla laughed scornfully. "I told you. Dru has her heart set on this. And what Dru, wants. Dru gets, right honey?"

Drusilla had picked up the struggling girl and brought her over to William. "Besides, Spike, it's almost time for cake!"

William looked at the girl, the look of terror on her face. Did she even know what Dru and Darla were? What he was? Did she know she was going to die?

"Ladies, I'd love to oblige but eating people gives me a headache these days. I'll pass."

"Oh but that's the Birthday surprise, Spike. Darla, can we unwrap it now?"

Darla held the device up to William's face. It was black plastic, with dials and buttons. It resembled a television remote control only smaller. William remembered seeing something just like this on a table somewhere in the Initiative headquarters. If this little piece of plastic did what he thought it did, he should have grabbed it at the time. 

"I guess that thing controls my chip."

"Very good, Spike. With this little remote, I can program the chip to hurt you badly; you've already seen that feature in action…or I can just _turn it off_. It's really up to you."

Dru clapped her hands, "Aren't you excited, Spike?"

William was totally stunned. This was something he'd have given his left arm for 9 years ago! Now, it was 9 bloody years too late! What was he going to do?

"Ladies. I'm touched, really. That was damn thoughtful of you. But I think I'll pass. Come back in another 7 years or so, and we'll talk. Now just untie me, okay?"

"See, Dru? I told you. It's not just the chip anymore…it's all those years of conditioning. If a cow gets a shock every time he touches the electric fence...he will stop going near the fence. Will stop dreaming of escape. Start being happy in his own little pasture! Until the farmer, who loves him so much turns him into hamburger."

"Mooo, " said Dru.

"And I'll bet you've been living on animal blood too, haven't you?"

"Well…yeah. What difference does that make? They don't sell human blood here."

"Bullshit, Spike. They sell it. I've seen the bars where they do. But you know that human blood makes you aggressive, so you stick to nice safe animal blood. Cow, pig…chicken!"

This was true. When William had first come to New York, he had found some demon bars that served human blood, but it did make him aggressive...he was always picking fights with people, which given his chip was a really stupid thing to do. He had stopped going to those places years ago.

"Look, Spike luv, I've got a nice tasty girl for you right here," Dru plopped the helpless girl down on Spikes lap. He could feel her terror. Her neck was inches from his mouth.

"Get her off me! I don't want her!"

"Spike…remember when I said that we were giving you a choice here? Well, I lied. Dru and I want you back with us. It's nice to have a man around…even you. And Dru wants her family back, so without further ado…" Darla aimed the device at William, "gee I sure hope I programmed this correctly…I'd hate to see your head explode."

"Boom!" added Dru

Darla pushed the button. William felt nothing. No change. But then again after his original operation he hadn't felt any different either…he had attacked Willow fully expecting to kill her, only to be thwarted by that hideous pain. He looked at the girl huddled against him on his lap. He could smell her blood rushing through her veins, spiked with adrenaline. Can I really just kill her now? Just sink my fangs into her neck? Am I really Spike again? Well, Goddamn Happy Birthday to Me!


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

"Here, I want to show you something." Buffy held a book out to Tina. "This is Drusilla. I just want you to get a good look at her, so you'll recognize her if you see her."

Tina looked through the old book on vampire lore, which Buffy had dredged up from the boxes of Giles' books still unpacked in her spare room. There was also a photo of a particularly bloodthirsty looking Spike, bearing the caption, "William the Bloody." Angelus was there too, part of that legendary family of vampires, but who was this pretty blonde girl, with the ringlets and lace dress? Oh, this was Darla, Angelus' sire. 

"I've met her." Tina said.

"Who? Drusilla?"

"No...this one called Darla." Tina showed the page to Buffy, " She was the vamp who came up to me in the train station the other night, pretending to be from a homeless shelter. She offered me meatloaf."

"Darla? Are you sure it was her?"

"Totally. It's not like she looks any different then she did then, except for her hair and clothes."

Drusilla and Darla _both _in New York! It couldn't be a coincidence. They had to be working together. This was _so_ not good. Each of them was dangerous in her own right, but together they were a scourge. Strangely enough, Buffy felt a little better. When it was just Drusilla, Buffy had harbored a secret fear that William had gone off with her of his own free will. She had a mental picture of him tossing away the FAO Schwartz shopping bag and setting off with Drusilla into the moonlight. But with Darla in the picture, it was much more likely that he had been abducted. Small comfort though, since she still had no idea where he had been taken.

Over the past few hours, she and Tina had hunted in vain. They had gone back out and searched the area around the toy store again and had even gone into the park, but they had found no other evidence. They had phoned several cab companies, but Tina had been correct; they wouldn't give out that information to non-police types. If Buffy had been a licensed detective, it would have been a different story. But Buffy didn't really think that William had taken a cab. If Dru and Darla had spirited him off someplace, it was probably somewhere close enough to Fifth Ave. that they could get him there, perhaps unconscious, without causing undue attention. Well, that narrowed it down to about 50,000 places.

Dawn wanted to take Emily outside to their little neighborhood park to play. Buffy was apprehensive, but realized that it was probably safe enough in the broad daylight. It was good to get Emily out of her hair for a little while so she could think. What could have happened? How did Dru and Darla get William to go with them? She thought of Drusilla and that cattle prod, and shuddered. The telephone rang. Buffy leapt for it, hoping for some news.

"Hey, Buff."

"Oh, Hi Xander!"

"Willow said that you were missing the sound of our voices. So I just figured I'd call and give you a good dose of Xander speak."

"Oh, Xander it _is_ so good to hear your voice."

"Buffy, what's wrong? You don't sound like the happy Buffster we've grown so accustomed to lately."

"Oh Xander. William is missing."

"Missing? Old Spike? Uh...how long has he been gone?"

"He was supposed to come ho…over last night and he never showed. I think he's been abducted."

"Whoa, Buff! Just because a vampire stays out all night, that's not exactly milk carton time!"

"Xander…you don't really know him. Not since he's changed. I swear...this is not typical behavior from him. I'm really worried."

"Well, he and I did have few laughs at Giles' funeral. Well, not _laughs_ exactly…I mean, we got along pretty well. It took me a while, but I could see that he had changed. And…I know how you feel about him...if you're worried, well then there is probably something to worry about."

"Oh Xander...it's even worse than that. Drusilla and Darla are in town!"

"In New York? Okay Buffy...you now have my official permission to be worried as hell."

"Thanks. But what can I do? I really wish you guys were here. We'd comb this City until we found him."

"I know, Buff. Can you call that new Slayer kid to help you?"

"I did. She's here." Buffy lowered her voice, "But she doesn't understand about William. To her he's just another vampire…a sub-species. The other night we were in this restaurant and she was asking him all these questions. But it was as if he was a talking dog, and she was asking him why dogs chase cars and chew up sofas. She wasn't trying to get to know him as a _person._ Do you know what I mean?"

"Yeah...it seems to me we all pretty much felt that way about vampires."

"Oh, I know. I'm not blaming her; I'm just not getting a whole lot of emotional support here. Plus, let's face it, she's 15 years old. I wasn't exactly as deep as the ocean when I was that age. Thank goodness for Dawn. But I need her to watch Emily, so it's only Tina and I to find William."

"Well, maybe I could have Willow and Tara fax over a locator spell. I don't think it really works that way though."

"A locator spell. Boy, I really could use Willow right now...or any witch for that matter…. wait!"

"Buffy, are you still there?"

"Xander, you are a genius, even long distance. We _have_ a witch. Winnie the Witless! Our secretary!"

"Uh, Buff…why doesn't the name Winnie the Witless give me feelings of confidence?"

"Oh, she's the world's worst witch. But maybe with adequate supervision, she could do a simple locator spell. Oh Xander, I've got to go. Thank you so much. Love to Anya, Alex and little what's 'er name."

"Okay, Buffy. And don't worry, you'll find him. One way or another. Let us know what happens, okay? We love you."

Buffy phoned Winnie at the office. Buffy had long suspected that Winnie had a major crush on William, and her suspicions were confirmed when she heard how distraught Winnie was over William's disappearance. She was pathetically eager to help, and said that she could indeed do a locator spell, and that she would be right over if Buffy could provide a large map of New York City.

Buffy sent Tina down to the gas station on the corner to get a map. It was probably stupid to pin her hopes on a witch who had once set William's office on fire, while trying to produce a light spell, the kind of thing that Willow could do without batting an eyelash. But Buffy was now officially out of better ideas.

Dawn came back with Emily. It was getting close to dinnertime, and Buffy ordered some pizza for all of them, though she herself couldn't eat any of it. Emily had asked about William, and Buffy told the child that he was working and would be home when he could. Emily understood working, though William didn't usually work in the daytime. Buffy hated lying to her, but she didn't really know what else to do at this point.

Winnie came to the door with William's signature black duster draped over her arm and a shopping bag full of ingredients for her spell. She indicated the coat. "I needed an item of his clothing for the spell."

"Come in Winnie." Winnie waddled in. Short and stout with hair of an improbable shad of purple, Winnie looked as though she had just graduated from Hogwarts Academy. Or flunked out, which was more likely. She was only 19 years old, but seemed much older, because, as she put it, she had previously lived many lifetimes and had a very old soul. She also claimed to be psychic, though Buffy had yet to see any evidence of this. Her bedraggled cat, Fluffy followed behind her. Emily took one look at Fluffy and picked her up and carried her off to her bedroom to play with. Poor Fluffy knew Emily, and was very patient with her. The cat also obviously had a very old soul.

Winnie handed her spell book to Buffy, who read the directions, while Winnie and Tina spread the map out on the living room carpet. Winnie carefully mixed the ingredients in her large copper bowl, which she placed upon the black duster that was on the floor next to the map.

"Wait!" Buffy said. "This involves fire! Dawn get the extinguisher!"

"Oh, ye of little faith, "pronounced Winnie solemnly.

Dawn produced the extinguisher, and Winnie intoned a little Latin, lit a match and tossed it into the bowl. The powder in the bowl briefly flared up, and a small spark rose up out of the bowl. It hovered over the bowl, and the women watched in fascination as it floated over the map. It hovered over Fifth Avenue and began to move. Finally it came to a stop, and went out. They looked at the map. Disappointment flooded their faces.

"It's the middle of the lake!" Exclaimed Dawn.

"How could he be in the middle of the lake?" Buffy moaned. It was hopeless.

"Okay...perhaps I was a little off…maybe he's just _near_ the lake."

Buffy studied the map. There were plenty of places to hide out in Central Park. She and William had hunted vampires there. In fact they had routed a nest of vampires from an abandoned boathouse right near the lake.

"That's it!" Winnie exclaimed suddenly making Buffy jump. "It's the boat house!"

"How did you do that?" Buffy demanded.

"Do what?" Winnie asked.

Buffy got to her feet. "Tina, do you want to come check out the boathouse with me?"

Tina had been reaching for a slice of pizza, so she grabbed a handful of napkins and plopped her pizza slice down on them. She took her weapons bag and was ready to go. Buffy had to smile at Tina's enthusiasm. 

"Winnie. Would you please stay here with Dawn and Emily? We'll call you if we have any luck."

Buffy and Tina took a subway to the park, Tina munching pizza along the way. Flashlights in hand, they ran to the boathouse. It looked dark and deserted, the windows boarded over. Tina tried the doorknob…it turned in her hand. Tina quickly pulled open the door and Buffy rushed in stake in hand, but came to a halt when she realized that the boathouse was empty. With the flashlights, Buffy and Tina scanned the small room, looking for clues. Rowboats leaned against the walls, but only a few rats were hiding there. An ordinary kitchen chair stood in a corner, Near one leg was what looked like a puddle. It was sticky and Buffy knew that it was dried blood.

"They've _been_ here," Buffy announced, her voice filled with despair. But where were they _now_?


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Chapter 8

William turned his head away from the girl in his lap and closed his eyes. He could still feel her there, though, and smell the blood in her veins summoning him like a dinner bell. He tried to think of something else- something good. A happy memory. That was easy. That night in the club when he had first danced with Buffy, first kissed her. No…that was no good. Thinking about Buffy was making him want to cry and that was not the effect he was going for here. Song lyrics…that was a good one. Goodness knows he'd used them a few times to take his mind off what his body was doing. He tried to think of a song. Bloody hell! His mind was always full of some stupid song or other and now he couldn't think of a sodding one. Ah. Okay, this would do. Twenty- twenty- twenty- four hours to go, I wanna be sedated. No place to go, no way to go home, I wanna be sedated. That wasn't quite right. Put me on a something, put me on a plane…put me in a wheelchair, before I go insane, Can't control my fingers, I can't control my brain…"

"What is he doing?" demanded Dru, " Why isn't he eating the girl? His mind is all full of spinning wheels." 

"He's resisting. That's what he's doing. I must say, I'm impressed, Spike, I didn't think you had it in you. "

Darla reached over and pulled the girl off William's lap. "No point in torturing you or this poor girl any longer. I think we'll just let you both go." 

At this, William looked up at Darla, just in time to see her sink her fangs into the neck of the girl. The rich coppery smell of her blood filled the small boathouse, and Williams' mouth began to water. It was beyond his control. He couldn't tear his eyes away as Darla drank from the girl. She fed sloppily, letting blood drip on the floor, wasting it, in front of his starving eyes. When the girl was almost drained, Darla tossed her to Dru. "Here, Dru, you finish her, and then dump her in the lake. Put rocks in her pockets or something so she doesn't float, Okay?"

Dru looked at the girl, all drawn and white, hanging on to life by the merest thread. She smiled gaily at her, "Oh, are we having a pool party? Let's go see the turtles at the bottom of the lake. They lie there day after day, just waiting…poor lonely little turtles." She dragged the girl out the door.

"Oh, but we've been selfish, haven't we, hogging that whole girl to ourselves. Here." Darla took her blood stained finger and ran it across Williams' lips. "Just a little reminder of what you've been missing."

William tried not to lick his lips but it was impossible. He could taste the girl's blood anyway, so what did it matter? The sweet, rich taste filled his mouth and he closed his eyes in agony. He didn't care about the bloody girl...hell, he didn't even know her. But she was Dawn's age…she reminded him of Dawn, that's probably why his eyes were filling with tears and why he felt sick to his stomach. He'd seem plenty of death…caused plenty of it too. No reason why this girl should affect him like this. He must be weaker than he thought.

"Well, this is a problem," Darla said, considering. "I really never dreamed that you would be so stubborn. I should have remembered. Unfortunately, we can't stay here. It will be morning soon, and this park is full of people in the daytime. I feel too vulnerable here."

"Well, untie me then, Darla. I'll be on my way, and you can find yourself someplace cozy…with a view."

Darla laughed. "Always the joker, Spike. You didn't really think we would let you go, did you?"

"I'm not stupid, Darla. But, I can't walk to the new place like this; you'll have to untie me. At least my legs."

"Oh…did I say anything about walking? " Darla took the Initiative device out of her pocket and aimed it at him once again. "_You _get to ride." She pushed the button. William's head was flooded with intense pain and he lost consciousness. 

"Oh, Spike, you've been sleeping for ever so long. Are you ready for tea? I've arranged a tea party."

William had been awakening slowly for some time. His head hurt too much to even open his eyes. He knew where they were, though, from the smell of dampness and urine, and the rumblings of distant trains. The subway…very clever. This place was a rabbit warren. They could hide out here forever. The chair was gone, and he was tied to a cement column…sitting down thank goodness, his legs stretched out in front of him. William rather missed the chair…it had felt like a sodding throne, compared to this filthy, hard, cold cement floor. He opened his eyes painfully; Dru was playing with a couple of Victorian dolls he hadn't noticed at the boathouse. One had red hair, and the other was blonde. She was pretending to serve them tea, pantomiming so skillfully that William could almost _see_ the tiny china teapot and cups. Undoubtedly, she _did_ see them. Lovely, thought William, a Slayer tea party. What day was it, he wondered? Buffy must be frantic by now. Or was she? Did she even realize that he would never just take off? Was she even looking for him? He was very hungry, but that was nothing. Hunger wouldn't kill him, though a starving vampire wasn't a pretty sight. No, what bothered him more was the craving, the lust for human blood that Darla's actions had awakened in him. It was so much more than mere hunger. How much longer could he resist? And really, what was the point? He was a vampire after all, not a human. He had been living in an unnatural state for 9 years. Living a human life. Was it all just an illusion? The whole family bit? How could he even think about being a husband to Buffy or a father to Emily? It was ridiculous, when all he really wanted, all he could think about was blood. 

William could see by the approaching shadows that Darla was coming back with another victim. This girl couldn't have been more than 17. She had long blonde hair, and she was stumbling in front of Darla, with her hands tied behind her back. Darla had obviously been shopping around, choosing victims that he would find the most appealing. No drunks or bag ladies for him. 

"Spike. I see that you have finally woken up. Dru and I were I little worried. I certainly hope that this isn't going to cause you any permanent brain damage. That would be a shame. "

"Get stuffed, Darla."

Dru looked up from her tea party, "Ooh…William is angry with us, Darla. He has lightening flashes 'round his head."

"I do hope that you've worked up an appetite, Spike. I really don't have time for all these moral quibbles of yours. "

"What day is it, Darla?" William asked wearily.

"Saturday night, well Sunday morning actually. What difference does it make? Do you really think she misses you? Do you really think she is even looking for you? Please." 

William didn't answer her. His eyes were on the girl. She was clearly terrified. The veins were throbbing in her neck. The craving was overwhelming him again. 

"If Spike is naughty, we could tie him to the train tracks," Dru interjected, " I saw that in a movie once. Or was it in a dream? Sometimes I dream about movies."

"Dru, dear. You're the one who wanted Spike to join our little party. He won't be much fun, all chopped up in little pieces will he?" She looked back at William, " Though it _might_ be interesting at that."

William looked from Dru to Darla. Why was he even considering spending the rest of his unlife with these creatures? Dru's insanity was no longer appealing. For the last year he'd had a girlfriend that he could actually talk to without having to consult the Rosetta stone. And face it, despite her pretty face, Darla was just a sarcastic bitch.

Of course now that he could feed again, he didn't have to stay with them; he could set off on his own. He could go somewhere far away, be his own man again. It was what he had wanted for so long, wasn't it? Why keep fighting? He would be fighting his own nature. How easy just to give in and slip back into his old life. It all seemed to be moving out of his control. He looked at the girl, in despair, tears running down his face unchecked. Finally, after what seemed like hours, he looked up at Darla, who was busy propping the girl against the tiled wall of the tunnel.

"Now that you mention it…I am feeling peckish." He said.

Buffy and Tina ran back to Buffy's house from the subway station. They found Winnie, Dawn, Jason and Emily watching a movie on television. 

"Dawn! Do you really think that Emily should be watching _Reservoir Dogs?"_

"Oh, sorry, Buffy, I didn't think…Did you find him?"

"No. I think they _had _been there, but we missed them. Winnie, Can you do another locator spell?"

"Oh no." Winnie was close to tears. "I can't."

She reached into her shopping bag and took out a large glass jar. It was empty except for a few purple crystals clinging to the bottom. "We used the last of the myrtle essence."

"Well, can we get some more? We have to find them before they get too far away."

"I buy it on line from MagicBox.com. I'm expecting some more in a couple of days. There are other Magic shops, but it's late Saturday night...I don't know where we could get any at this hour."

Magicbox.com…Anya's site. I guess magic is a small world, thought Buffy. But that wasn't going to help us now.

"That is a very large bottle of, what? Myrtle essence?" Tina observed. "We only used a little tonight. Do you do that many locator spells?"

"Oh, n-no," Winnie stammered, "it's used for lots of things."

"Like what?" asked Tina, curious now.

Winnie blushed, "Hair dye, mostly."

"Oh, well that explains a lot."

"Winnie," said Buffy, "You claim to be psychic, right?"

"I _am_ psychic," Winnie said proudly.

"Well then you come with us. We are going back out there and we are going to find them. Tina, are you game?"

"I'm game, Buffy. Just let me call Pricilla and let her know what I'm up to."

"Good idea. I have to go put my delinquent daughter to bed."

Dawn came up to Buffy. "I'm sorry. She refused to go to bed until you and William came home. I figured the movie would be over her head."

"I know Dawn. And I appreciate you giving up your plans to watch her for me. You're a good sister." She gave her a hug.

"You'll find him, Buffy, I know you will."

"Yes, Dawn, but _what_ will I find?"

The three women marched with determination into the subway station. They were heading back to Central Park to start their search from the boathouse. They were an odd sight…the very tall red headed youngster, the medium sized blonde and the short, fat purple haired sprite, loaded with weapons and flashlights. The subway was almost empty, but the people who were there paid them no mind. That's what I love about New York, thought Buffy.

As they emerged from the train at the stop closest to the boathouse, Winnie stopped short, and turned pale. "They're here," she whispered, "Here in the subway."

"Of course!" exclaimed Buffy. "It is the perfect place to hide, with all these tunnels, and nooks and crannies…there are whole populations of people living down here. We've had a lot of trouble with vampires and demons here also."

Winnie was shivering with fear. "I'm not sure I w-want to go d-down these tunnels and n-nooks and crannies."

"Winnie we need you to lead us. Tina and I don't have a drop of psychic-ness. Well, except for prophetic dreams, and I haven't had one of those in years, and well, with this kind of thing...we're counting on you."

Winnie bravely set off deep into the bowels of the subway system, Buffy and Tina following her. Tina whispered to Buffy, " You think she really knows where she's going?"

"It's the only lead we've got. I say, go for it."

Darla looked at William, suspicion gleaming in her eyes. 

"You're right...Darla, " William said sadly, "I've been living in a bloody fool's paradise. Not seeing what was right in front of my eyes. I am a vampire, a creature of the night. Human blood is my natural food. Anything else is just…pretense."

Darla brought the girl over to him, but William shook his head. "Not this way, Darla."

Drusilla was watching him, fascinated. "He's Spike. He wants to _eat_ like Spike, not all tied up like Miss Edith when she won't eat her spinach."

"That's right Dru. Let me up, Darla. I won't fight you any more."

Reluctantly, Darla untied the ropes that bound William to the column. He tried to get up, but was weak and his muscles were cramped from sitting for so long. Darla and Dru helped him up. He stretched, feeling a little better. The girl turned white with fear. He was in no hurry to make a move. Anticipation was almost as sweet as fulfillment. Drusilla was saying something under her breath. It had such a familiar cadence that William strained to hear it, "Will you eat her on a train? Will you eat her in the rain? Will you eat her here or there? Will you eat her anywhere? "

He looked at Dru in shock...how would she know Dr. Seuss? He looked at Darla. Darla was watching _him_, not paying any attention to Dru's ramblings. He looked at Dru again and she met his eyes. Directly. Sanely. These moments of sanity had happened occasionally over the years like the sun peeking out from behind the clouds, and they didn't last long, but right now, for the moment, she was as sane as he was. 

He reached for the girl, and bent to untie her ropes. "What are you doing!" Demanded Darla, whipping out the device and pointing it at his head..

William looked at her scornfully, "Darla...as long as you have known me...have you ever known me to eat a helpless victim like this?" 

"He likes a bit of a struggle, he does," sang Dru, coming closer to watch. 

The girl was free but too frightened to move. William brushed the hair back from her eyes, and away from her neck. He held her tightly by the shoulders and bent his head to the sweet flesh of her neck, where the vein throbbed invitingly. At the sight of that vein, his face changed into the vampire Spike, and as his fangs grazed her neck, he whispered in her ear, "Run! Now!" and pushed her away. At that moment Dru grabbed Darla from behind and deftly wrestled the device from her grip. The girl was galvanized into action and took off. William turned back to Dru and Darla, Darla's face a mask of fury and outrage. Dru tossed him the Initiative device, and William looked into her eyes once more. He wanted to ask her why? Why had she plucked Green Eggs and Ham from his subconscious, to remind him of what he was fighting for, to remind him of the love he had for a little girl and her mother? Why had she tacitly agreed to help him? But there was no time. The sanity was already fading from her eyes, and Darla would escape, and be on him. He ran.

As he ran, he could hear Darla coming behind him. He was weak from hunger, but he pressed on, up towards civilization and home. The sounds of trains and screeching brakes were much louder here. He tossed the Initiative device on to the tracks. Soon it would be splintered into a million bits. There was somebody up ahead around the bend...he could see all sorts of strange shadows. Was it the girl coming back here for some reason? He couldn't stop; Darla was catching him up. He turned the corner and ran smack into his secretary, Winnie. Buffy and Tina right behind. With them was the girl he had saved, sobbing hysterically on Buffy's shoulder. "Darla!" he warned them, and not a moment too soon.

Darla came around the bend and stopped short at the sight of William and the two slayers, These were not Darla's kind of odds, especially when the slayers pulled out stakes and advanced toward her. She backed up and they came towards her. The tunnel was suddenly filled with the squeak and squeal of an on coming train, the whistle, almost deafening. Buffy and Tina continued their advance, Darla her retreat, until she could back up no further...she was at the edge of the track. The slayers raised their stakes, and Darla took a frightened step backwards, and fell screaming onto the tracks into the path of the coming train. There was an earsplitting screech of brakes and the train was gone. Buffy and Tina looked onto the tracks, afraid to see a mangled but undead body, but there was none. The train had severed Darla's neck, dusting her. William turned and looked back into the darkness, and thought he saw Dru flitting behind the columns. He turned his back on her, not mentioning her presence to the slayers. If she were foolish enough to stay in New York, he and Buffy would have to hunt her down and kill her. But not tonight. Tonight she had been sane, if only for a moment, and had saved him. He and Buffy looked at each other. The girl had obviously told her story, and Buffy looked at him questioningly, "Dru?" 

He shook his head. "I'll explain later, love." He pulled her into his arms and kissed her. "Buffy. Listen to me. The chip is gone. Deactivated. You don't have to worry about it, or me, any more. I think I'm going to be all right. It was awful, Buffy, but it was my love for you and Emily that saved me." 

Buffy held William tightly in relief. "Come, we've got to get you home. Emily has been crying for you. I want to show her that her William is home. And you can give her our first clue."

"What do you mean?"

"The big fat frog we found on Fifth Avenue." He smiled, feeling like a frog himself, who somehow, by some miracle had turned into a prince.

William and his friends headed for home.

The End


End file.
